 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids. |
 | OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age. |
Persons Unknown
Common Sense Media says
Compelling mystery with some violence might appeal to teens.
Parents say
Kids say
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this is a largely psychological drama that gets pretty intense, with some sudden violent acts (including kidnappings and druggings) and characters who use guns and knives for protection, albeit with minimal bloodletting. Language is surprisingly clean, with only a few, rare utterances of words like "hell" or "damn." But other iffy content may hard to predict, due to the show's structure of revealing more about characters' secrets over time.
What's the story?
PERSONS UNKNOWN are holding seven strangers (Daisy Betts, Jason Wiles, Chadwick Boseman, Tina Holmes, Kate Lang Johnson, Sean O'Bryan, and Alan Ruck) hostage in an eerily quiet ghost town -- but none of the captives can remember how they got there. All they know is that one moment, they were living their lives, and the next, they were waking up in a locked hotel room with a surveillance camera tracking their every move and emotion. Once the strangers band together into a makeshift tribe for mutual protection, they try to deduce who's pulling the strings, and whom they can trust.
Is it any good?
On its face, Persons Unknown has a pretty absurd premise: Seven strangers wake up in a deserted town that could easily double as a movie-set backlot, only to find that they can't leave thanks to some sort of invisible fence line that's being controlled remotely by an unseen source. (Luckily, they can order Chinese food from the restaurant across the street. Yes, really.) But once you buy into the strangers' predicament, it somehow becomes plausible, if not oddly compelling -- particularly when you realize they're not living there alone.
Much like the wildly successful Lost, Persons Unknown plans to reveal its characters' secrets over time through flashbacks that shed light on their puzzling pasts. And while its no longer wholly original, that type of forumla promises game-changing plot twists that will likely keep fans interested. What's more, it's got real appeal as a gritty series both teens and parents can enjoy...a rare thing in today's prime time programming.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about the show's plot structure and format, and the popularity of other TV dramas with central mysteries that reveal themselves over time. What devices do the writers use to keep you interested from week to week?
What do you make of the central characters? Would you say they're a diverse bunch? Do any of them represent popular stereotypes, or do they tend to defy things we've seen on TV before?
What role does violence play in the show's appeal? Do you think there's too much violence? Too little?
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AGE
Very Intriguing Show
My whole family is very intrigued by this show. We never miss it. Whole crazily unplausible, it is one of those rare shows we are all interested in even with all of our different ages. Some of the psychological and physical torture/trauma scenes can be intense but it all goes with the theme of the show. I can't wait to see how it ends.
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AGE
Caution.
I have watched the first few episodes and for the most part it is very interesting. There is alot of violence between the cast. And there is a young lady you bares her naked front to the camera (thats is watching them) while showing the viewers her back side wearing nothing but her underwear. Initially she shows up at the hotel in a very very short dress. and later gets hit on agreesively by one of the older men you grabs her and forces a kiss on her.
One scene the hospital patient has everyone drops there pants to see this thing that was embedded in everyones skin.
In the "other" world. A reporter and his boss get a little cozy in the hall of her apartment while she is dressed in a long shirt barely covering her behind. Then they disappear into her room.
One man is seen smothering his wife in a brief scene, which later is discussed with him by another man and the smotherer doesnt say anything just walks out.
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| TV rating: | TV-PG |
| Network: | NBC |
| Cast: | Alan Ruck, Daisy Betts, Jason Wiles |
| Genre: | Drama |
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